A Hero's Shadow Chapter 3
by XShatteredNightmareX
Summary: Link is convinced that the events of the night before were just a dream...or were they? (Rated T for mild sexuality and violence)


When Link woke up the next morning, he had a terrible headache. He couldn't even get out of bed. Even with the concerned villagers knocking on the door, he didn't get up to answer. But it wasn't like people couldn't come in, the door wasn't locked.

Link stayed in bed for the entire day, he didn't feel like getting up to eat….or even to look outside. The light was too blinding, it hurt his eyes to look.

What was happening to him? He had convinced himself that what happened last night in the basement was just a dream.

And if it wasn't' a dream, how on earth did he get back in bed? He had no memory of climbing back up the ladder or going back to bed, so it must have been a dream.

Finally at night, Link managed to get out of bed. He was feeling only slightly better, but he should at least get something to eat so that he didn't starve to death.

As he took small sips from a bottle of left over soup, the pounding headache returned. Eventually it became so bad that he couldn't even eat.

He dropped the bottle and it shattered on the ground. He gripped his head with his hands and whimpered in pain. Now, on top of the pain…he was hearing voices, whispers…

_You are nothing! Quite standing around! Useless! Pathetic! Some Hero you are! Come here so I can strangle you! I'll do Hyrule a big favor and wipe you off the face of the earth! You aren't smart, you aren't special, you mean nothing! No one would miss you if you were gone!_

There was a sudden knock on his door.

"Link? It's me." Came a familiar female voice.

Link gasped and turned around. The voices had stopped, thankfully….and someone he knew and cared for was here.

He walked over to his door and opened it.

"Link…."

Zelda embraced him with a warm hug. "I've been worried sick. You haven't been writing back. I've sent you several letters." She said, concern laced in her voice.

Link's voice was sore for some reason….he couldn't speak to Zelda.

"Link, what's wrong?"

Link finally found the voice to speak. A fire of irritability sparked in his heart. He was suddenly very angry, for almost no reason at all.

"I'm fine, Zelda." He grumbled.

Zelda blinked in confusion. "Pardon?"

"I SAID I'M FINE YOU PATHETIC WENCH!" Link suddenly shouted, snapping at her and pushing her away.

Zelda looked physically and mentally hurt. Her eyes began to become glossy with unshed tears. "Link…" She whispered.

Link let out a shuddered breath. He turned around and took a few steps towards the fire place. He looked down at his fingers, which were interlaced with each other.

"What's happening to me?" He whispered, more to himself than anyone else. No pure state of reckoning could possibly explained why he snapped at a royal figure, a good friend no less. He turned around to look at Zelda, his eyes too…were glossy, they were pleading for mercy.

"Z-zelda I….I'm sorry."

Zelda bit her lip and turned around. She walked out of his house with nary a word.

She had been betrayed by her most trusted friend and she didn't even know why.

Link looked to the side, he felt tears streaming down his face. That wasn't /him/ who said that….what did he say? He couldn't even remember! If he could he would take it all back.

"_Aww, be a big boy now and stop crying, will you? She's a wench. She's nothing but a wench and she'll always be a wench! So why are you weeping all of the sudden?" _That cruel voice in his mind spoke out of turn once more.

Link balled his hands into fists. "Get out of my head!" He yelled and kicked a nearby bucket, sending it straight into a wall.

That menacing chuckle returned.

Link brought a hand to his forehead. "I…I have to apologize to her! I have to tell her…"

"_Tell her what? That you're the only one who was brave enough to tell her what she really is? She's a whore!" _

Link gritted his teeth together in bitter resentment for the voice in his head. "No…she's not. She's my best friend, and a kind ruler. I…I love her." He admitted.

With that, he ran upstairs to put his tunic on. It wasn't too late. He could catch up to Zelda and tell her that wasn't him who said that…

It was Dark Link. His dark counterpart was still in his mind, influencing his thoughts and emotions. Goddess, what would be next? Would Dark Link make him kill the villagers in Ordon? Make him murder the ones he loved and burn Hyrule to the ground? He couldn't let it get that far…he wouldn't.

He climbed down the ladder of his house and ran down the path into the forest. "Zelda!" He called her name out into the woods. "Zelda?!" He would not stop until he found her.

He saw her, crossing the bridge that overpasses the gorge between the Faron woods and the Ordona province. "Zelda, wait!" He caught up to her, until he was just a few mere meters from her.

Zelda turned around, it was apparent she had been crying, but when she saw that Link had been too, her cold gaze melted slightly.

"Link? What are you doing here?" He asked, hoping that he wasn't here to spill more insults out at her.

"Zelda, I….I'm sorry! That wasn't me that said that…please, just…let me explain."

Zelda folded her arms across her chest. "Go on."

Link sighed. "I…I don't know what's happening but, you have to believe me when I say…that I think I'm being controlled by some sort of dark being…something evil."

Zelda gasped. She knew her fair share of knowledge as far as possession, but she had never seen it to this degree before.

"You believe you are possessed?" She asked.

Link nodded.

"Yes. Please Zelda, I…I would never say something like that! I trust you, I care about you a lot!" He said.

Zelda sighed. "Very well. Let's go the Light spirit spring, I have an idea." She took him gently by his wrist and led him across the bridge.


End file.
